Colorado parents, school officials relieved oil storage facility expansion near school nixed

School officials are celebrating the cancellation of a project that would expand a storage facility that parents and teachers say is toxic to students at a nearby school.

Karla Loría, the superintendent of Adams 14 School District, which is located next to many oil and gas production facilities, says pollution affects her students' education.

"As an educator, I know the impact that an environment that is toxic for our students, has on their performance," Loría said. "We have students who are often just having nosebleeds out of nothing. We have a high index of asthma amongst our students, we have students coming in with headaches. We have a high rate of chronic absenteeism, meaning that students are out 18 days or more in a school year."

So when she learned that there was a plan to expand a storage facility across the street from Dupont Elementary School in Commerce City, she felt she had to do something.

"Adding additional tanks was just going to exacerbate that toxicity in our community," said Loría.

She partnered with community organizers Cultivando to prepare the community to fight back against the plan, but last week, they got a surprise.

Magellan Pipeline Company withdrew its air permit application for the proposed five-tank expansion. They say the proposed tanks are no longer necessary.

Loría says it was a welcome surprise, but she says despite this win, she will continue to fight for environmental justice for her students.

"We still are victims of huge toxins out there," Loría said. "We have 20 tanks that are spewing over 300 tons of toxins in the air every year."

But she says it's important for the wider community to see that the underdog can win.

"For communities who are advocating for environmental justice, sometimes it's difficult to see those wins and, and excited because it was a way for our community to experience that their voice matter," said Loría.

Oneok, the parent company of Magellan, says it will continue to meet its customers' needs with existing infrastructure and looks forward to working with stakeholders in the future.